Ok so the family went on a camping trip and i was planning a few days of pure pottery fun. Until I cut my Fricking hand very bad!! It's on the outside of my pinky/knuclke are so It's impossible NOT to use that part of my hand throwing and centering. What do you do when you get a cut on the parts of your hands that you use? This was supposed to be my pottery weekend. Is there something you put on it?

Learning On my Kick wheel with my vintage Paragon (from the late 1960's)

The best thing I have found is a product called Dr. Schulze's Anti-I (for anti-infection). It contains (among other things) hot pepper extract, so it burns when put on open wounds like crazy, but it forms a protective barrier over the wound that does not infect and it helps stop the bleeding.

Assuming it's not a huge gaping wound, I would just go ahead and work with it. The clay seems to heal cuts well. If you're worried, try latex gloves. You can always cut away the parts of the glove you don't need and just keep the wounded area covered.

I was thinking of using wound glue and a rubber glove on the one hand, but this Anti I stuff.... have you actually used it and thrown pots with it right away?

The nitrile gloves sound better than just silicone gloves that i would get at walgreens...

Seriously, nothing sucks more than finally having time to throw a ton of pots and this happening!

No I have not actually used it and thrown pots with it right away. I have used it and done other things that required using my hands the next day however. After you put it on you need to let it set at least overnight, and depending on how deep the cut is, put several more applications on the cut.

I learned this from my doctor.
With most cuts I use crazy glue to mend them. If you want a FDA approved glue you can get thermabond its about 30$ a small tube or crazy glue for 2.99$
I have done this for many years now and it works great.I glue my finger cracks as well so they heal fast.Just put a dab on and press the shin together and instant bond. Water and clay will wear it away so a few applications over time may be necessary .
I just had some surgery and they use thermabond in the operating room as well as stiches but the bill was 24K so a 30$ tube is small stuff I'll stick to the crazy glue on hands
Mark

Thanks!! I am going to try these. My cut is not stitches bad, but it bleeds pretty fast. It's on the spot where your pinky and knuckle connect but on the outside of the hand where the hand meets the wheel when centering. So I will have to use a full glove to keep it covered.. maybe cut off the pointer and thumb part that I use a lot. Thank you all for the wonderful tips!!

Learning On my Kick wheel with my vintage Paragon (from the late 1960's)

Clay supposed to be good for cuts and scrapes. I manage to cut myself multiple times and just had to keep going.
BTW, if nothing else helps (clue and modern medicine), use hoary plantain leaves (no idea what's the common name for it is in English) and saliva. Wash the leave in a puddle of water (one on the road for example) and/or just lick! the leave clean so it sticks to bleeding wound on your hand, knee, elbow, head or any other part. That is what we used to do as kids Warning, this will not work for deep knife wounds that need 3 or more stitches... LOL

Be careful with "finger condoms" and similar rubbery stuff. Those will not let the skin breath and this is actually really bad for any wound.

Tegaderm makes two products that can help.
1. Tegaderm patch is a clear plastic sheet dressing that will cover the wound with a water tight seal yet allow air to flow to the skin.
2. Teraderm patch with colloid. This has a almost bee's wax like layer in the patch that forms a water tight seal yet also is air permiable.
Many pharmacies can order these for you. I really like the tegadern colloid patch for skin tears and cut. It can stay on for a week at a time. You can get it wet, throw with it, then rinse off. It sticks and protects. It's great stuff.

Sorry if I sound like a commercial sponsor. Maybe I can ask them for a sponsorship........

Tegaderm makes two products that can help. 1. Tegaderm patch is a clear plastic sheet dressing that will cover the wound with a water tight seal yet allow air to flow to the skin. 2. Teraderm patch with colloid. This has a almost bee's wax like layer in the patch that forms a water tight seal yet also is air permiable. Many pharmacies can order these for you. I really like the tegadern colloid patch for skin tears and cut. It can stay on for a week at a time. You can get it wet, throw with it, then rinse off. It sticks and protects. It's great stuff.

Sorry if I sound like a commercial sponsor. Maybe I can ask them for a sponsorship........

Jed

You do not sound like a commercial sponsor. You sound like a doctor or a nurse. :-)You forgot to remind about the Tetanus shot, though.

Hey I'm not a commercial sponsor and recommend Crazy Glue-sold at just about any store from grocery to parmacy to 7-11's-under 3$ works great.-Not approved by FDAApply then go back to workUsuall warnings will stick fingers together and glue eyeballs shut ,will stick private parts together and make for a big mess-use caution when appling wigs to scalp or gluing toes together.One last note this product will glue your splash pan back togther so Offcenter can repair all the ones hes trashed at least verbally.Mark

Used some new skin today and it worked . Some did peel off but it stayed over the cut which was important. It reminded me of super glue but it has antibiotics in it. thanks Chris for the suggestion. I like it. I was able to work with a nasty cut on my index finger.

To add to these excellent suggestions, if the location works, NexCare makes really great waterproof bandaids and tapes. That would be an alternative for the heel or side of the hand. They do flex, but don't necessarily remain tight when used 'hard' on a knuckle.

Used some new skin today and it worked . Some did peel off but it stayed over the cut which was important. It reminded me of super glue but it has antibiotics in it. thanks Chris for the suggestion. I like it. I was able to work with a nasty cut on my index finger.

Marcia

I keep New Skin in my classroom, as it does work well, when protecting the wound, while working with clay. It is like super glue, especially in the fact, it will burn like crazy right when you put it on. It will peel off after a while, as it isn't nearly as elastic as your skin. The other downside, it takes a couple minutes to dry fully, which can be annoying. Though, as Marcia stated, it does have antibiotics in it, so that's a nice bonus you won't get from super glue.

When I was in college, I had an abrasion on my centering hand, from the constant wearing from the grog. So I used Liquid Band-Aid. It is a two part product, with a swab, and some drops you put on the swab to activate it, then wipe it on. It doesn't sting like New Skin, and makes a nice little temporary seal. However, only so many of the swabs come with the kit, and you end up with more of the liquid drops, than swabs....It's like the hot dog/ hot dog bun conspiracy.Also, the Liquid Band-Aid did not hold up very long against the grog either. Still, it was better than dealing with the discomfort, from having a tender spot on my hand, continually assaulted by what is essentially tiny bits of broken glass.